The End is Coming - The Big Picture

This old world is dying, not from any other reason than the sin of man. Man's sin brought death to the world (Romans 5:12). Sin broke man’s fellowship with God. God has since allowed the whole of creation to suffer the effects of sin (Romans 8:19-22), but He has always had a better plan that is just as unexpected and just as mysterious as how He sent His Son Jesus to be the sacrifice for mankind (Jeremiah 29:11). His plan goes beyond forgiveness.

In His plan, God the Father is thinking ahead for a bride for His Son (Ephesians 5:25-32). The New Jerusalem shall be the Beulah land (married land, (Isaiah 62:4)) – a place for the bride and the Groom to live forever in the presence of the Father. The bride is the redeemed church in the New Jerusalem, who as individuals recognized their sin, and believed on Jesus’ “once-for-all” perfect payment and ultimate act of love for fallen man. Christians have been bought out of the grip of death and evil. All Christians are the servants of the living God, and are currently displaced citizens of heaven, eagerly awaiting our Hero’s return.

Just imagine a huge mural hundreds of feet long and fifty feet tall. If you were right up close to it, what you saw might not make any sense at all. There’s a horse down here; a cloud up there. But if you backed up enough to see the whole thing, then you could see the story the mural tells from beginning to end. Seeing the Big Picture is the starting point for thinking about the end times. The Tree of Life was there in the Garden, and it will again be there in the New Jerusalem in the New Earth in the sunless New Heavens. God never changed His mind about it. Man would live forever in his sins if he ate it after sinning in the garden. But in that place we will be holy and able to eat of its fruit. His salvation has been woven throughout our history for our good.

Most people are very curious about what is going to happen in the future. This is the part of prophecy that still hasn’t happened yet, and it is exciting just knowing a piece of the future. Some people have spent their entire lives being extra sensitive to the end signs and whether or not Armageddon is right around the corner. I absolutely do think it is good to study and know about what is going to happen in the future, but it is not essential to salvation (1 Corinthians 13:2). It is for our comfort (1 Thessalonians 4:18) and encouragement, so when times are tough we can keep everything in perspective. If we don’t understand something, it’s okay, but be encouraged by what you do know. Jesus has not forgotten His own. He is coming back, and He has already overcome.

Jesus introduces Himself to John in the Revelation saying, “I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End.” (Revelation 1:8) In other words, He is in control, has always been in control, and will finish everything His way. The Tribulation and the Antichrist and the Battle of Armageddon are all “done deals” in His book. None of those things are a threat to Christ’s kingdom because HE WON EVERYTHING when He rose from the dead!

Since the beginning of man, there has been a spiritual battle going on between Satan and God the Father. The land of the living is the battleground for this spiritual battle. It’s not animals or plants or land, but it is the souls of people that are fought for (Ezekiel 18:4 & 13:18). Satan has never ceased luring men to follow his destructive path. “The End” includes the end of Satan and his defeat and his treasured weapon, Death. Satan’s capture ends the Great Tribulation, and Christ will repair the world (Romans 8:19-22; Isaiah 2:4 & 11:6-10) and be High King for 1000 years (Revelation 20:4). When looking from one end of the Big Picture to the other, remember God has never forgotten His intentions of holy fellowship with pure-hearted men and women with sin nowhere to be found. Yes, this world and universe will end (Revelation 21:1), but what is coming is so much better! NO more sin, NO more death, no more evil. “Game Over” for the devil and death (Revelation 20:10,14). But for God’s redeemed people, all things are made new (Revelation 21:5).

Time is running out for this earth, this universe, and for people bound in chains of sin and death. But knowing this gives God’s redeemed people more reason to invest in what is eternal and spiritual (Matthew 6:19-20). The days leading up to the Tribulation will be marked by overwhelming self-centeredness, hatred, and godlessness in the world (2 Timothy 3:1-4). Yearning for God’s truth and looking forward to His glorious appearing, we will survive the tough times and persecutions. In such times our God and Savior will be with us, working His will through us and giving us unexplainable peace and joy. Take comfort that the end is part of God's plan, just like the beginning.

Next time's Blog: Dark Horizon - What will the world be like before Christ's return?


--Johnie